Armstrong Debt Rating Is Cut
Amid Asbestos-Litigation Woes

By

Queena Sook Kim Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal

Updated Nov. 28, 2000 12:01 a.m. ET

Standard & Poor's said it lowered its ratings on Armstrong World Industries Inc., a subsidiary of Armstrong Holdings Inc., because the unit failed to repay $50 million of commercial paper that was due last Wednesday. The downgrade is a sign the company may be a step closer to filing for bankruptcy-court protection, largely due to asbestos litigation.

Armstrong World, a maker of floor and ceiling products that accounts for more than half the parent's assets, saw its ratings lowered to D from B- for its corporate...